Secure Computing to acquire CipherTrust

Secure Computing said Tuesday that it plans to acquire messaging security firm CipherTrust in a deal estimated at $273.6 million. The deal, which will give shareholders of privately held CipherTrust a 14 percent stake in the combined company, includes $185 million in cash, 10 million shares of Secure Computing stock, and a $10 million note that is contingent upon hitting certain performance goals. CipherTrust CEO Jay Chaudhry will become chief strategy officer as well as the vice chairman of Secure Computing's board when the deal closes, which is expected to be by Sept. 8.

"Over the past few months, we have made excellent progress with the integration of CyberGuard," Secure Computing CEO John McNulty said in a statement. "With the brunt of the initial integration activity now behind us, we believe the time is right to continue investing in enterprise gateway security, which is experiencing strong growth." Secure Computing announced its plans to buy CyberGuard in August 2005. The company also said Tuesday that it now expects revenue for the second quarter to be around $38.5 million to $39.0 million, less than the $43 million to $45 million it had previously projected.